Archive for
November 7th, 2009

Last Tuesday night was a potentially huge win for the Cavaliers’ franchise. And not just because they had a nice comeback victory against the Wizards.

A couple hours after the game, there was a massive party underway on The Q’s fourth-floor practice court. The team’s owners, especially majority owner Dan Gilbert, and top officials were celebrating and hugging amidst tables with high-end food and top-shelf alcohol. There was even a disc jockey. If not for the dozens of Issue 3 banners, you could have mistaken it for a five-star wedding reception.

Voters have cleared the way for Gilbert to build two casinos within the next three years, including one across the street from the arena he controls. The effect it will have on downtown is debatable, but there’s no doubt the impact it will have on the Cavs.

Gilbert’s victory — which amounted to pulling the sword from the stone after casino issues had failed four times before — can be attributed in part to how well he’s managed the Cavs since he bought them in 2005. It may have only been the beginning.

Gilbert should consider encouraging Cavs players to gamble there. Maybe they’ll lose all their money back to him.

Friday night the Golden State Warriors, playing at home, lost to the Los Angeles Clippers, who enjoyed very good games from Baron Davis and Chris Kaman.

As you surely recall, Davis used to be a Warrior and helped inject some nice life into the team while he was there.

Baron’s buddy Stephen Jackson, currently an unhappy Warrior who has requested to be traded, does not support any boos from Golden State fans in Baron’s direction.

The AP reports:

Jackson took exception to the fans’ reception of Davis, who was making his second appearance in Oakland since leaving the Warriors. Davis was booed every time he touched the ball.

“Baron is a great player,” Jackson said. “What upsets me is they boo him but they have short memories. They forgot the reason they’re still coming here is because of what he did when he was here. The organization was in the trash can before we had that year.”

The way I see it, the Warriors currently have so many issues, the last thing any members of the team need to worry about is how fans react to former players or anyone wearing the wrong jersey.

The Allen Iverson saga has taken another turn as the veteran guard asked for and was granted permission to leave the Grizzlies to deal with a personal matter, according to an NBA source.

Iverson, 34, met with Griz owner Michael Heisley Friday night following the team’s 114-98 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers. The pair met again this morning, and Iverson was expected to depart for Atlanta this afternoon.

Atlanta is where Iverson lives during the offseason.

But things were going so well! Seriously, I wonder — and this is just logical guesswork — if there’s a chance the team and Iverson will part ways, either now or in the very near future.

I say the Grizzlies should have a final discussion with Iverson and explain to him what they see his role being for the rest of the season. And if the two sides can come to some sort of agreement, end the disputes and agree to start again. But if the Grizzlies still see Iverson as a super-scorer off the bench rather than one of the team’s core top two or so guys, and Iverson simply cannot stomach that, they should immediately discuss a buyout.

Read fan reaction and discuss your own opinion in the InsideHoops NBA forum.

Nets forward Chris Douglas-Roberts, who has been sidelined with flu-like symptoms, has tested positive for the H1N1 virus, according to Nets President Rod Thorn. Douglas-Roberts has been treated accordingly for the illness and the Nets have followed all precautionary measures as mandated by NBA guidelines.

The Detroit Pistons announced today that Tayshaun Prince will be out of the line-up indefinitely due to a small rupture of a disc in his lower back. The injury was confirmed following an MRI exam and evaluation by team doctors conducted this week.

Prince will continue to receive treatment for the injury and further updates on his status will be provided when appropriate.

The 6-foot-9 forward has appeared in three games this season averaging 12.3 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 38.7 minutes per game.

Orlando Magic star Dwight Howard is a bad free throw shooter, so it’s a good gamble for defenders about to give up a potential easy inside shot to be sure to foul him and force him to sink the charity stripe shots.

Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel reports:

The Hack-a-Howard is in a lot of opponent’s game-plans just as the Hack-a-Shaq was when O’Neal was a young Magic center.

The Magic have no more answers today for Howard than they did in the early-to-mid ’90s with Shaq.

The club complained to the league back then about the intentional, body-jarring fouling and little changed. Ditto in the Dwight era.

On Friday, General Manager Otis Smith threw up his hands and said, “What’s the league going to do?” Coach Stan Van Gundy has talked like a defense attorney this season on behalf of Howard, hoping the NBA might get the message through the media.

The answer?

“We — and Dwight — have to adjust to the situation the way it is,” Van Gundy said.

Howard for his career shoots 56.9% from the field, and only a little better, 60.2% from the free throw line.

Kobe Bryant scored 41 points while becoming the youngest player to reach 24,000, leading the short-handed Los Angeles Lakers to a 114-98 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday night.

Ron Artest had 19 points and seven assists in the fourth straight win for the defending NBA champions, who played without injured big men Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol.

Lamar Odom managed just three points before fouling out on his 30th birthday, but Bryant carried the Lakers while reaching his latest scoring milestone 38 days before Wilt Chamberlain did. With a second-half surge, he even overtook Grizzlies guard Allen Iverson for 16th place on the NBA’s career scoring list.